A Lebanese expat casts her vote in Lebanon's parliamentary election at the Lebanese school in Doha, Qatar May 6, 2022. REUTERS/Imad Creidi
Doha: Sixty-six percent of Lebanese expatriates in Qatar cast their vote in the parliamentary election yesterday, the embassy said on social media.
The Lebanese Embassy in Doha yesterday, Friday, May 6, 2022, organised 17 polling stations for the diaspora inside the Lebanese School in West Bay from 7 am to 10 pm.
The embassy extended thanks and appreciation to the Lebanese community for their efforts and active participation in the democratic process.
According to Farah Berri, Charge d'Affaires at the Embassy of Lebanon in Qatar, 7,340 registered to vote in 2022, whereas it was only 1,800 in 2018.
After the 2018 elections, this is the second time that the Lebanese diaspora is allowed to vote, as they were previously prohibited from voting abroad. Lebanese living in Lebanon will cast their ballots on May 15.
According to media reports about 31,000 Lebanese citizens in 10 countries had registered to vote in Friday's first phase. On Sunday, nearly 195,000 Lebanese citizens are scheduled to vote in other countries around the world including the United States, Canada, Australia, Russia, European Union members states, as well as several African nations.
The vote this year for the 128-mebmer legislature is the first since the country’s economic meltdown began in October 2019, triggering nationwide protests.
